EAST LANSING – As Michigan State’s other two flagship athletic programs buzz along with energy and hope and wins — lots of wins — the program that used to carry the university’s fan base will try again to rekindle what it once had.

That wouldn’t have mattered 20 years ago. Munn would have been packed to the brim anyway, and the football game at Minnesota likely wouldn’t have been available on TV until it was shown late at night on tape delay on WKAR.

MSU doesn’t need hockey like it once did, when its fans were able to derive positive self-worth from a sold-out Munn and Frozen Fours, while the Spartan football and basketball programs toiled in mediocrity. The MSU hockey program will likely never again be such a pivotal part of the psyche of the common Spartan fan.

It’s not better this way for MSU hockey in general. But a soft launch to the latest new era of MSU hockey is probably best for this team.

“You’ve gotta go through it,” said Cole, 50, who played at MSU during those glory days in the late 1980s. “There aren't any shortcuts. And if you try and take a shortcut, it's just really, really painful.”

One could argue what MSU hockey has gone through since its surprising national championship run in 2007 has already been “really, really painful.”

No MSU hockey fan wants to hear “You’ve gotta go through it” right now, even if every educated fan knows it. At least it’s a new voice asking for patience, one fans have a bit more faith in than Mark Hollis’ last hire, Tom Anastos — another alum from better times, another good guy with a grand vision.

Cole, though, has a far better pedigree, having coached the USA Hockey National Development Program for seven years, after coaching Division I hockey at the Alabama-Huntsville for four years.

There is always the chance that MSU catches lightning in a bottle with Cole. I watched as Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill resurrected Western Michigan’s program in one season several years ago. That takes more than great coaching. It takes late recruiting finds and having players with better talent than what showed under the previous regime. Turnarounds are hard in college hockey. However, they shouldn’t be as hard as it seemed under Anastos.

“I hope they’re realistic with that,” Cole said. “There’s definitely some work to be done. I think we can be better, though. I think we’ll make some steps. There’s been a good buzz. I think there’s some excitement. There are good hockey fans here. There are people that know hockey. They’ve been around it a long time.

“I think there’s a decent understanding of the process we’re going to have to go through. I certainly want the responsibility, I want the accountability of us continuing to get better. Hopefully their mentality is similar, and they’ll see progress, and their excitement will build off of that.”

It’s best for Cole that MSU fans have plenty else to be distracted by. After six losing seasons in the last nine years, it’s best this program not have too much attention until it’s ready.

Cole will be given time. You’ll have other options until then.

Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @Graham_Couch.